Tackling the Debt Ch. 01

Author's note: As usual, the first chapters of my series are low in kinks as I prefer to work on character development first. Chapter 2 will definitely have more heat and more BDSM elements. Some nice things are coming. Hopefully you'll enjoy this first chapter. :)

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Chapter 1 - The first dollars

I just broke up with my boyfriend. I loved him very much, but there was no other choice. He took it badly and said that I should have told him earlier about my problem; he was a hundred percent right. I shouldn't have started dating him three months ago, but I did. I lied to get close to him because I needed affection, support. I shouldn't have allowed love to enter my heart in my current situation, but I was weak, and I needed someone to sleep and cuddle with before it was all over. I used him, and I was very sorry about it. I would carry this mistake with me for as long as I lived. I hurt him, like I did to all the others.

On this day, I couldn't even afford to think about the past. I looked at all possible options and decided on this one. It was probably the worst path to follow for most people, but I knew myself. I knew this was my best chance to fix the mess I created within the shortest amount of time. If I could manage to do this, it would be my redemption.

I was standing in front of a two-story building. The two sliding front doors made of glass transmitted a certain impression of modernity. This place was the home of a very special debt recovery agency, and I was about to throw myself inside it and experience the warmth of this wolf's mouth.

"Come on! Standing here won't solve anything. Let's go! It's time to pay the price for your mistakes."

My feet started moving, fed by the energy regurgitated by my own guts. I was alone; my boyfriend was the last one. I lacerated all ties leading to my family and most of my friendships vanished as floating ashes after I set them on fire. The two last friends that were supportive of me, we parted ways a few days ago voluntarily, doubting we would ever see each other again.

I was officially nobody anymore. Yet, those people I left behind in bad or good terms, they were my reason for going through this ordeal as fast and hard as I could. I understood so much more about hurting people today than I did before, and this would help me during this quest.

The sensor detected my presence and the two doors slid open to invite me in, there was no going back. As soon as I stepped inside, there was a long white desk with two administrative assistants sitting behind it, one of them who waved at me with a smile.

"Hello! How may I help you?"

"Hi ... I'm Chloe. I have an appointment."

"Ah yes, please take a seat, someone will be with you in a moment."

This place was so quiet. It gave me the feeling that I was the only one in the world with money problems. Not giving me enough time to sit down, a casually dressed man showed up and called me over. This place may have been looking like a medical clinic, but this person was certainly not looking like a doctor; I was at the right place.

"Chloe? How are you doing? I'm Matt."

Shaking his hand politely and not replying to his generic question was the appropriate thing to do. People coming here are never doing well, and he knew that, so he just led the way to his office. After closing the door behind me, he invited me to take a seat.

The room was modest. It was kind of reassuring for a company that existed solely to take money from indebted people. He had a comfy looking office chair, a small glass desk on which his laptop was sitting, and there were two chairs for the clients. It was not really what I expected; I thought those guys would be filthy rich and showing it off.

Matt engaged a dialogue that would more than likely seal a good part of my future.

"So, Chloe. You are here to clear some debts?"

"Yes ... Obviously."

"Perfect. The first thing I want to tell you is that we didn't make any decision yet, okay? No matter what we will discuss this morning, you do not have to commit or sign anything. If you have a question, ask it. This is the best way to understand the whole process."

Well, at least he was friendly and disregarded any of my hostility. He could have been pushy or arrogant, but that was not the case.

"Thanks, will do. I'm not sure where to start, though," I said.

"It's okay. Let's just crunch the numbers first, it would be pointless to worry about the rest right now. I suppose the first question I have to fire your way is, how much debt do you have?"

I carried the embarrassing answer within me when I entered this building with the objective of telling them, but yet, I didn't want to. I HAD to. My lips parted and reluctantly let the astronomical number escape from my throat.

"1.3 million ..."

"..."

I knew this was going to happen. Matt froze up, and he was just staring at me in search of his next words, it took awhile for him to find them.

"Chloe ... Just file bankruptcy. Our service is not a good one for your financial situation."

"I don't want to do that ... Can you at least give me an estimate? So that we have an idea."

"It's pointless! I mean, we can do the maths, you'll see for yourself. It is just not possible."

"I'm sure I can make it happen."

"I doubt it. So, what is your household income?"

"I have none."

"Do you own a house or a car or anything of value, such as jewelry?"

"No. I have nothing. I sold everything already."

"I figured as much else you wouldn't be here with that much debt."

He slid his calculator in front of me and started to punch in some numbers.

"You owe 1300000$ ... the minimum interest we have to charge you is 3% ... That is 39000$ per year. So every month, just to keep your debt alive, it would cost you 3250$. But that's not all. The absolute minimum our company can charge for the service is 4000$ per month ... That would give you a total of 7250$ per month and your debt would stay the exact same."

"I can do it!"

"No, Chloe, you can't ... and even if you could, it would take you a lifetime to clear off that much debt. Let's say you did it in 20 years ... that would be over 5000$ per month on top of the 7250$. See, this makes no sense whatsoever. You must file bankruptcy now! It will ruin your life for a long time, but it is much better than ruining it forever. You cannot find 12000$ every month, even if we give you a clean slate to work with. Be realistic."

Hearing all those numbers I didn't want to hear was making my eyes water due to the pain it was inflicting. If I were to file bankruptcy, I knew I would never have a life again; it would not do what I needed. This 1.3 million was a debt I HAD to honor, not only for me, but for the people that deserved to be paid back. I couldn't leave this office without an agreement, I had to convince him!

"Matt. You must help me. Please let me do this."

"No. You should leave."

"I won't. Let me try for six months. I'll show you it is possible."

"Chloe, you seem like a nice girl, but this is too much. The minimum would be almost 45000$ for those six months. Where are you going to find that kind of money in such a short time?"

"I'll find a way!"

"No! Now, get out. I'm sorry."

"Three months! Let me try for three months!"

"Stop insisting! This discussion is over."

"No, it's not! Just one month ... just give me a chance to prove it to you, I can do it! You are the only one who can help me! If I don't have your minimum at the end of the month, then I'll leave."

Matt had enough. He slammed his laptop cover shut, stood up, and put his two strong hands on the table, not so much to intimidate me, but to put some sense into my skull.

"Chloe. It doesn't even work that way! Not even close. It is not something you can just try! But, yes, you are perfectly right. We are the only one who can help you. And you know why? Because everybody else will stay far away from you. You own nothing, you have no revenue, and you are 1.3 million in debt. Your only option is bankruptcy, and you know it!"

I lowered my head because he was right and it was reason enough to kick me out. I must have sounded like a crazy person. I started sobbing, realizing that my moral life was coming to a definitive end. Matt waited for me to say something, but there was nothing else I could have said or done.

His irritated tone changed to one of pity after being washed away by the poor spectacle I was offering.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"... I'm sorry?"

"Look at you, Chloe ... This is not just about the money, is it?"

"..."

"You look smart but yet you are willing to doom yourself ... I've seen so many people that got into debt. Generally, they are irresponsible, never learned a thing about money and simply don't give a damn. They would have filed bankruptcy for less than a fraction of what you owe. You are nothing like them ... So? ... What happened to you?"

A thousand knives sliced my heart when he forced me to express the real reason why I was here. If I were to tell him, a gallon of dark blood would come out from my mouth. What I have done was too terrible.

"Chloe, tell me!"

"I ... It ... It was my fault ... It was an accident ... But it was my fault ... I didn't mean to!"

"Mean to do what?"

"I ... I had a business ... My family and friends all gave me money to start it, and I thought it was going to work well. But then ... I made a huge mistake on one of my biggest contracts, and we got sued ... real bad. We lost the case swiftly, and we owed so much money."

"Well, it happens, it's not the end of the world ... File bankruptcy and start fresh in 5 years."

"No ... My biggest mistake was that my family and friends were affected too. Because of my poorly written contracts, they were also pulled in the lawsuit and lost everything as I did. My mistake destroyed so many lives. That 1.3 million is for them. That is around one third of what they lost after the lawsuit. I destroyed their lives ... all of them."

"Do you mean you don't want to file bankruptcy else they won't get any of their money back? ... I see. Was it really your fault?"

"Yes. And if I file bankruptcy, I'll never be able to get a decent job. If you keep me here, my debt will be on hold for as long as I need, and I will have an opportunity to find a way to pay it back."

Matt sat back in his chair, letting a long sigh out and looking at the ceiling.

"I am so going to regret this! Chloe. If I were to give you this chance ... Are you SURE you can get that minimum payment of 7250$? Every month?"

"YES! ... I'll do all I can to make it happen!"

"I'll do it."

"REALLY?"

"Stop! Don't get too excited. If you don't bring in the full amount, everything will be over. So as soon as you leave our building today, you'll have to figure out a way to make some serious cash. By agreement, we cannot help you with that. I am doing you a HUGE favor, and it is only because I'm one of the owners. So DO NOT mess up. My reputation is very much on the line. You will have to show me what you are made of. I will give you the best tool we have, but your mind is what you are going to need the most."

"I won't mess up! I won't! Thank you! Thank you so much!"

What a surprising turn of events. Matt was amazing! A minute ago, he was about to have me kicked out, but now he was giving me the only thing I was in need of. Hope.

He pulled out a contract and started to explain to me every single point listed on it. I already knew the basic idea, but I learned a few important things. Not being the type of seller that would try to hide anything from his customers, he inspired me confidence; he just wanted me to know what I was getting myself into as he knew I couldn't back out once the agreement was signed. I gave him all my attention and listened to his speech attentively to make sure everything was crystal clear in my brain.

"So, first, we will fully manage your debt. As you know, we are a recovery agency, the bad guys. We are not a charitable organisation. You'll only owe money to us from now on, and we are the ones that will redistribute it to the right people. Simply put, we own you. It may sound harsh, but it's the easiest way to put it."

"I get it. You have a job to do."

"Exactly. Now, the fun part. Your body will stay here, under our care, for as long as you'll owe us a single dollar. We have never kept someone for 20 years, so please, pull a miracle and clear your debt faster. No matter what you have to do, do it. You cannot afford to be picky or ethical. Money is money, and your clone is expendable, make good use of it, they are made very tough."

That was the most exciting part. The clone.

"They are better than our normal body?" I asked.

"Not better. Just healthier. Look, what I want to make sure you understand, is when I said that your body will stay here for as long as you owe us a single dollar. We will give you a tool to accomplish your goals, and that tool is the clone. It belongs to us. So if you try to run away, we will kill it. If you don't pay your minimum, we will kill it. If you are caught committing a crime, we will kill it. And if any of that happens, it is a breach of contract. We will wake your original body, you will incur a penalty, and you will go to jail this time. So you must understand that part really well, it is not a game."

"I do ... I was aware of this. It just makes sense. But ... What would happen if you killed me? I mean, my clone."

"Good question. We would wake up your real body, and you wouldn't remember a thing. You wouldn't even understand why you would be going to jail until we explained why to you."

"Well ... that doesn't sound fun at all. If I bring back the clone here first, will I remember everything?"

"It will be up to you to choose. We can do it both ways. You can decide at that time. Some people just want to forget; I don't blame them."

"I think I would want to remember. Forgetting must feel horrible."

It was a good system, I thought. Those guys could store away my body for some time. Simply put, I would be losing my freedom as if it was a jail sentence; with a 1.3 million debt, I certainly deserved it. In exchange, they would build me a clone, which was a synthetic human body, they looked so real, and they would move my consciousness to it somehow. That new body would allow me to go out and work hard to obtain the money I owed.

Matt and I filled tons of paperwork, and he entered everything in his software. He told me exactly what he was doing to reassure me as much as possible, to show me it was not a trap. From now on, the government knew I was held in this facility so no creditor would come looking for me as long as my case was in order. If my family or friends were to look for me, they would also quickly find my registration file, even though I highly doubt they would bother after what I have done to them. I signed everything that needed to be signed.

"All done, Chloe. I personally want to ask you one last time, even if I know what you are going to tell me. Are you sure you want to go ahead with this? It is not too late back out. It is a huge deal for your future."

"I'm ready!"

"Yeah, I thought so ... Okay then ... Follow me. The good news is that It will actually feel good."

We got out of his office and followed the hallway in direction of the operation room, or whatever they called it. The last thing he said got me curious.

"Ah yeah? It will feel good?" I asked.

"Yes. You are a cute 27 years old, and you seem very healthy, but just imagine if you were 18 again, that would be the best way to describe it."

"You find me ... cute?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. It was not professional."

I pulled on his arm to stop him from walking. Matt was nothing else than awesome to me. He was taking a significant risk just to help a distressed girl. I had to bring back a lot of money in a very short time, and if I failed, I would probably go to jail, which would be very bad for the reputation of his company. But he listened to my story and agreed to give me another chance to redeem myself. It was more than just business. He did this because I touched his heart somehow. Perhaps he had a soft spot for me? Nevertheless, I was very grateful for what he did and wanted to reward him the only way I could.

"Matt, wait, are you single?" I asked

"I ... I am. Why?"

"When is the last time you slept with a girl?"

"Chloe? ... This is embarrassing. What kind of question is that?"

"Just tell me, don't worry."

"I don't know ... Years ... I just don't have time to build relationships with girls. I'm always too busy."

"Well ... I don't want to put you in a tough spot. But I want to give you something in exchange for all your help."

"Chloe ... this is just business ..."

I pushed myself up on my tiptoes and gave him a deep kiss with a lot of tongue. The way he leaned into the kiss showed how much he liked it.

"So, how was my gift? Is it still just business?"

"... It's ... good."

"Are you in a hurry? We can do it some more if you liked it."

"Well ... I have a few minutes ... I guess."

We kissed again ... and again. I seriously started to be turned on. He was an excellent kisser, and I was losing myself in the moment. I wanted to give him a little something, but in the end, he was not the only one that got rewarded by this activity. I just didn't deserve it nearly as much as he did.

I was pretty sure he liked me very much now, which made me a happy girl. Going through this ordeal was partly to become a better version of myself, the money wasn't everything. This kindness I expressed to Matt, for no other reason than gratitude, was the first step in my recovery. It felt so good to give freely and I wanted more of this feeling ... but we had to go.

We walked in silence, but I was still holding on his arm and my head rested on his shoulder. He led me to a small room where there was a coffin-like device made of shiny white plastic next to some computer equipment. There was nothing fancy in here. Matt spoke to me as he was opening the side door of the white box.

"Alright, Chloe, just lie down in there, then I'll walk you through the process. It is pretty straightforward."

"Okay ..."

I started to unbutton my shirt, but Matt stopped me immediately.

"Woah! Stop! ... What are you doing, Chloe?"

"Taking off my clothes? Are you shy?"

"You don't have to ... you can enter the box with your clothes on."

"Oh ... Sorry, I didn't know that. But ... since I'm already unbuttoned ... Would you mind ..."

I grabbed one of his hands and placed it on my breast. Matt was not resisting one bit. I could hear the ethical conflict bubbling inside his head, but he really was attracted to me, I could tell. I was the one offering, and I was not getting any privileges from this, so why not?

Matt and I kissed for a few more minutes while he massaged my chest. It was beyond me; I really wanted to make love to him right now. The sexual waves were traveling through me, making me feel amazing. I asked Matt a simple question.

"Matt ... Do you want to have sex with me?"

"Yes ... badly."

"Well, me too ... Let's do it ... I can't wait any longer."

"Chloe ... I ... I can't ... We have to do the transfer now ... I submitted the case to the authorities, and we have a limited amount of time to confirm the transfer. If we don't provide the clone code asap, we will be in trouble."

That sucked! Matt couldn't fuck me because of a paperwork issue? Funny, it was the first time a man served me that excuse, but I understood that it was out of his control. Perhaps it was because I was ridiculously turned on that such a weird and twisted idea popped up in my mind.

"Then ... Matt ... Could you make love to me while I'm sleeping? I know I would love it, and I know you want me badly too."